We would like to confirm, along with so many other developers who have come forward, that our title, Kindred Spirits, has also been targeted by Steam’s sudden and abrupt content policy shift and has been threatened with removal if the content of the game is not modified.

As you may recall from our own announcements and coverage in several news outlets, we and many others in the industry considered the release of Kindred Spirits unaltered on the platform a positive shift in the treatment of tasteful, mature content on the platform. We stand by our assertion then that content of the game is not pornographic, but an earnest and tasteful exploration of sexuality.

We went to great pains to run the game’s content by Valve representatives––including sending along every potentially questionable graphical asset along with advanced builds of the title––to ensure that that feeling was mutual. The game would have never appeared on the platform if we had not confirmed with Valve representatives that they did not feel the content was pornographic and was appropriate for the platform.

Despite our best efforts to respect both the letter and spirit of Valve’s content guidelines as we were made to understand them, we are wholly in the dark with this latest apparent shift in policy as no clear guidelines or standards have been provided. We will seek to negotiate with Valve to keep Kindred Spirits as-is on the Steam Store to the best of our ability, but failing that we still require guidelines to modify the title and future titles to fit these new, apparently stricter standards.

Regardless of Steam’s content policies, MangaGamer remains committed to excellent games and stories being told as they were meant to be. We have a long history of this commitment in the digital space relative to the majority of our competitors, and we invite any developers and partners who would like to sell on our platform to get in touch at support@mangagamer.com as we prepare to upgrade it in coming months for more clients, partners, and community building. Remember that in buying directly through us, more of your purchase goes directly to the game’s developers rather than a significant portion going to retail platform fees.

We will continue to post developments as they progress on this topic. All press requests should be made to our press director, John Pickett, kouryuu@mangagamer.com.

UPDATE 5/19 7:28p.m. EDT: We have just received word from Valve to disregard the previous notice. According to the e-mail, Kindred Spirits will be re-reviewed and we will be provided with specific feedback if there are concerns about the game’s content. We sincerely appreciate Valve’s prompt response with respect to this issue.

Firstly we would like to thank all of you for your patience with us and apologize for taking so long to formally address this topic. We had been hoping to resolve the situation or at least obtain some additional information from Valve beyond what has been already circulating publicly via third parties before making a statement, but we are unfortunately still quite empty-handed despite several attempts on our end.

Much of this will not be news to those of you who have been following the situation closely, but to clarify things and dispel some of the rumors that have been circulating, this is what we know: A Kiss for the Petals: Maidens of Michael was removed from the Steam storefront by Valve staff, we believe in response to a malicious and patently false user report. We do not know if or when the game will return to the platform at this time; it is very much out of our hands. That said, Maidens of Michael is currently and will continue to be available from our storefront. The game’s removal was not the fault of any of the game’s localization staff and no one has been fired or punished as a result.

We will keep you all updated with any information we do have as we become apprised of it. Thank you again for your continued patience and understanding; we assure you we are just as frustrated as you are about this situation.

Fans who have purchased either the adult or the all-ages version from our website will also receive a free Steam Key, so those who already own Chou Dengeki Stryker do not need to purchase it again to enjoy it on Steam.